


Shards of her soul

by Magdelope



Category: Dragon Age II
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-05-23
Updated: 2014-05-25
Packaged: 2018-01-26 05:36:36
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,655
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1676645
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Magdelope/pseuds/Magdelope
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Isabela has more secrets than just stealing the Tomb of Koslun. That secret's name is Aisha.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. The liar and the secret

The gang was sitting at their usual place in the Hanged Man. Even Aveline had joined them, even though she usually never enjoyed the crudity of the Lowtown tavern. Hawke was engaged in deep debates concerning mages' rights with Anders and Fenris, Aveline was trying to ignore how uncomfortable the surroundings was making her and Isabela was talking with Varric.

The pirate, sporting a mischievous grin, leaned forward towards the dwarf that was sitting on the opposite side of the table.

"Come to me, and I'll take you to places you've never been…" Her words were seductive but the laughter so imminent in her voice, showed otherwise.

Varric chuckled.

"Isabela," he said and protectively put a hand on top of his beloved crossbow, "are you talking to Bianca?"

"I think she deserves to feel a woman's touch on her trigger, don't you?"

Varric laughed out loud causing Merrill to jump at the sound.

"Oh stop it you," he said between laughs, "you are confusing her… and me!"

"Why?" Merrill interjected suddenly, "why is she confusing you? What am I missing?" The elf looked at her friends with curiosity in her eyes while Varric wiped away a tear. Isabela smiled affectionately at her innocent friend but couldn't help the next comment that slipped between her lips.

"I'm sure if you ask Hawke she will eagerly explain it to you. In fact, you are very welcome to use my room."

Hawke who heard her name being mentioned looked up just as Isabela offered her room. The mage gave a sheepish smile and awkwardly scratched the back of her head. She did have feelings for the elf but she had not confided in anyone and how the pirate knew was beyond her.

…

A few hours later Isabela approached Anders who was standing by the fire, away from the rest of the group. Varric had now began to tell the story of how the Hero of Farelden had saved the world from the blight with the help of a Witch of the Wilds, a bastard prince and a bard and the whole tavern was listening. Anders however, brooding as usual, was in no mood for stories and Isabela, even though she enjoyed a good story, had more pressing matters to attend to.

"What now?" Anders said as he noticed that Isabela was moving closer. He was tired, a little drunk and was not in the mood for Isabela's usual banter.

"You know tranquils," Isabela started, "you know a lot about them, don't you?"

"Yes, I mean, I know what I have learned throughout my life. Why?" Anders voice was tired, still expecting Isabela to come up with some rude punch-line to her questions.

"I would like to know if it can be reversed." Anders didn't know what to answer at first; the pirate looked so seriously at him, her question hanging potently in the air.

"Why are you asking me Isabela?" He asked but when the woman didn't answer he continued, "there has been rumor of the rite or tranquility being reversed by the help of a demon or spirit and…"

"Like Justice?" Isabela interrupted.

"Yes," Anders replied, one of his eye brows raised. "I supposed Justice could do such a thing if he felt inclined."

Isabela flashed a grin and trailed her hand along his arm.

"And just what would it take for him to feel inclined to do so? Hmm?"

Anders pulled his arm away from her, wishing that that pirate wench wouldn't do so. Especially since he was quite sure that Isabela didn't even mean it.

"Isabela, what is this about?" He finally asked and removed his arm from her touch, "do you have a tranquil that needs helping?"

"Of course not," Isabela answered quickly, a little too quickly, "I'm just asking for the pursuit of knowledge, naturally. You know me, always curious, always wondering." With that she giggled and left a puzzled Anders by the fire. The pirate needed a walk and left the tavern.

When she had left Anders moved from where he was standing and went over to Hawke, who had somehow in her drunken state wounded up with Merrill practically sitting in her lap. As he approached them, Hawke stopped nuzzling Merrill's neck, pushed her gently off and stood up.

"What is it?" She asked, knowing him well enough to see that he had something to say.

"I just had a strange conversation with Isabela," he said

Hawke chuckled.

"What conversation with Isabela isn't strange in some way?"

Anders shook his head.

"No," he said, "this was really strange. She asked about curing tranquil. I want to think that maybe she actually cares about the plight of the mages but my gut, and Justice, tells me that she has some selfish motivation. Maybe she wants to help someone."

"Isabela… help?" Hawke chuckled again, "are we talking about the same person?"

She looked around, looking for the pirate, "where did she go?"

Varric had by now joined their conversation.

"You looking for our rivaini?" He said, him drunk also.

"Maybe she went to her room…?" Anders tried but Varric shook his head violently.

"She has a room here," the dwarf said, "but she rarely uses it. In fact, now that I think about it, I have never actually been inside her room. Have any of you?"

Merrill came up to them and Hawke put an arm protectively around the elf's shoulders.

"Isabela's room?" Merrill asked, "I asked her about it once, you know, asking if she took any of her lovers there. She said that if she took her lovers back to her room they would know where she lived."

"Wait a minute," Hawke said, "has nobody seen the inside of Isabela's room? Not even the countless of people she sleeps with." The mystery seemed so intriguing in the drunken mage's head.

"I know which room it is, if you want to check it out," Varric offered and Hawke nodded eagerly.

Fenris and Aveline had already left for the evening but Varric, Merrill, Anders and Hawke all walked together towards the door that was Isabela's. Both Varric and Hawke were giggling at the thought of finding out why Isabela wouldn't show her room to anyone and Anders was still pondering why the pirate wanted to know about tranquils. Merrill was slightly worried that her pirate friend was going to be mad when they went into her room without asking but wherever Hawke went, she went.

They stopped outside the door where Hawke proceeded by picking the lock with dexterous hands. The mage smiled with satisfaction when there was a slight *click* and the door could be opened. The four friends held their breath as Hawke pushed the door.

It was a common room, two medium sized beds, a small table and an empty wooden bath tub. There was nothing uncommon about the room, or any object in it, the only thing out of place was the woman who was sitting on one of the beds, holding a book.

"Hello," she said and smiled but her eyes were vacant and on her forehead she bore the mark of the tranquil.

The four friends stood silently, unsure of what to say.

"What the-?!" Isabela's angry voice could suddenly be heard behind them. Hawke looked up, feeling guilty for entering her friend's room and uncovering, whatever this was.

Isabela pushed past Varric and entered her room. The tranquil girl smiled again when she saw the pirate but then eyed the other four people.

"Naishe," she said, "who are these people?"


	2. The pirate and the tranquil

Nobody spoke for a few minutes. Even the tranquil in the room remained quiet while observing her sudden intruders. The girl was short and her hair very long but apart from that she could have easily been taken for Isabela's sister. The girl's skin shone with a dark, Rivaini shade and her dark hair was held back from her face with a bandana; even her ears were adorned with big golden hoops. It was clear that she was Rivaini, and that Isabela had helped dress her.  
"Umm, Isabela," Varric was the one to break the silence, "is there something you want to tell us?"  
Isabela thought about it for a moment, wondering how she was going to play this. She didn't want to give the impression of being… caring.  
"Oh yeah," she eventually said in a matter-of fact voice, "I have a tranquil here whom I think really deserves to be, well you know, not tranquil anymore. I was thinking that perhaps Justice could help with that."  
Nobody replied, they were still in shock. Eventually Hawke had to say something.  
"Isabela… how… what?" But before Isabela had a chance to reply Anders cut in.  
"Isabela, if we agree to help you, and that is if agree to help you, we will still want information. And you should know that I'm not even sure if we are able to help you. The reversal ritual is difficult and it has hardly ever been done."  
"Not to mention," Hawke said, "it would be such a shame if she turned out to be a blood mage."  
"I am not a blood mage." Everyone turned to look at the girl.   
Hawke stepped closer into the room and without giving Isabela as much as a look started talking with the tranquil. Hawke knew that if Isabela didn't want to say something, there was nothing in the world that could make her reveal her secrets. The mage also had to admit to herself that she was irritated with Isabela for keeping this from them. They were supposed to be friends.  
"Who are you?" Hawke asked the tranquil.  
"My name is Aisha," the tranquil replied in a monotone voice without blinking.  
Anders followed Hawke's lead and walked into the room, also facing the Rivaini girl.  
"Why were you made tranquil, Aisha?" He asked her.  
"I don't know."  
Isabela tried one of her usual grins and tried to hide the worry in her eyes.  
"See, she doesn't know," she said, "doesn't matter. Can we just fix her?" The pirate received no answer, "pretty please?"  
Hawke and Anders looked at each other for a little while, seemingly having some sort of silent conversation. Hawke lifted an eyebrow at Anders but Anders just shrugged; he wasn't exactly an innocent and didn't feel like he could judge the pirate. The mage could feel Justice in his head, pressing him to try… Aisha was most likely innocent. No mage deserved tranquility.   
"Okay," Anders said.  
"Okay?" Isabela asked, she hadn’t expected him to actually say yes, "so you will do it?"  
Anders nodded.  
"I will try with Justice's help, but I can’t promise anything."  
"And," Varric added, "we still want to know what you are doing with a tranquil. A Rivaini tranquil at that. Your people don't follow the chantry, so I'm guessing there is a story there; knowing you, a good one at that."  
"I will tell when she is restored," Isabela said, but didn't mean it. She did not like talking about her past and had no intention of starting to. They would just have to be pissed off with her later, but then maybe Aisha would finally be herself.  
Hawke nodded, she didn't believe that the pirate would actually tell but there was something in Isabela's eyes that made Hawke wanting to help her. And if Anders didn't mind…  
Varric sighed.  
"It's late," he said, "We are all tired. Perhaps it is time to call it a day?"  
Isabela nodded eagerly, it felt so invasive to have her friends in her room. She wanted them to leave, to remove them before they kept asking questions… before the stupid tranquil said something they would both eventually regret. She let out a breath that she hadn't known she had been holding when Hawke nodded and her intruders finally left. Then Isabela walked forward and closed the door behind them. This was one of those nights when she did not feel like going out and finding somebody else's bed to sleep in. The pirate turned around and reluctantly faced the tranquil, the shell of the girl who had once been her best friend, her partner in crime, her… lover.  
"Naishe," the girl tried to get Isabela's attention, and the pirate twitched at the usage of her birth name, "what is going on?"  
"Nothing you need to worry your pretty head with," Isabela replied, trying to sound light but failing miserably. She had had Aisha for a few months now, hiding her from the world. She had had no plan, until she had, having her ear to the ground as usual, heard about a tranquil who had reversed the rite of tranquility, since then the pirate had been wanting for the right opportunity to bring it up with Anders. It was so handy being friends with a possessed mage. It was probably good that her gang had found out about Aisha, now she could get help, but it didn't make Isabela feel any less uncomfortable about them having been in her room.  
"I would like a bath," Aisha suddenly said and Isabela nodded absentmindedly. She knew that if Aisha asked for something it was because she needed it, not because she fancied it as such. "We'll go to the bathhouse in the morning."  
...  
The most popular bathhouse in Low town had dirt on the floor and the tubs were rarely clean but there were private stalls and hot water. That was all a stranded pirate could ask for. It was very early in the morning as Isabela guided her tranquil friend through the streets in order for them to take a bath. She needed one herself anyway.  
"Hot water, one hour." She said to the elf by the front door and threw him a couple of gold coins, ignoring his raised eyebrows and smirked at the thought of two women sharing a bathtub.   
Inside the room, Isabela turned her back as Aisha removed her clothes and entered the tub. Then the pirate was quick to remove her own clothes too and slipped into the warm water. She took up one of the soaps she had brought with her, threw another one to Aisha and started proceeding to wash her body. Aisha mimicked her movements.  
When the actual scrubbing was done, Isabela sank down in the water enjoying the warm sensation. The tub was large and square, something Isabela appreciated. This meant that she could lay on her side, facing away from Aisha so she didn't have to look at her or even acknowledge that she was there. The pirate closed her eyes, relaxing for the first time in days. She had been tense ever since Aisha had moved in with her.  
Isabela’s calm moment was over when sudden small hands were touching her back, scrubbing with the soap, kneading the skin. Isabela tensed up and turned around, pushing Aisha's hands away.  
"What are you doing?" She hissed, trying to cover up the apparent and unwilling sign of arousal that her chest was showing.  
"I was washing your back." Aisha replied, her voice void of emotion, "like I used to when we were young."  
"Don't ever touch me." Isabela said and went out of the bath to get her towel. Her relaxing moment was over and Isabela felt furious. Furious with Aisha for being a tranquil and furious with her body for longing for Aisha's touch, for even reacting to it when Aisha wasn't herself. Anders needs to fix this, Isabela thought to herself as she quickly dried and got dressed, motioning for Aisha to do the same.


	3. The rescuer and the rescued

When Isabela and Aisha returned from their bath, finally clean. Anders was waiting for them in the Hanged Man..  
"Good," he said, "you are here. I believe I have found a cure."  
"Finally," Isabela said, "when can we go? Right now?"  
"Hold your horses. There are some things you need to know first. Hawke has been kind enough to allow us to use her library for the ritual. I suggest we go there right now. After hearing what I have to say you might not want to go through with it."  
"Let's just go," Isabela said impatiently, “I doubt there is anything that will make me change my mind.”  
…  
They soon found themselves in Hawke's library. Hawke sitting on a chair near the door with Merrill sitting at her feet, both of them looking on curiously as Anders tried to explain why the ritual was probably a very bad idea.  
"I don't care," Isabela said impatiently, "Aisha doesn’t deserve to be like this.”  
"Even if it might be worse for her to be..." he turned quiet, looking concerned.  
"What do you mean?" Isabela said and threw her arms up in the air. She took a hold of Aisha’s arm and pulled her towards Anders violently, pushing the girl at him.   
"Is this what is best for her?" Isabela asked and looked at Aisha with annoyance in her eyes, "she might as well be dead."  
"Look," Anders said, "I realize that this is a friend of yours and that you want her back. But to reverse the rite… first of all, there is no guarantee that the reversal will be permanent and second, it is supposed to be a very horrific experience for the mage. Imagine remembering what pain feels like, to rediscover the emotions of despair, loneliness and sadness. Are you sure it wouldn't just be better to kill her?"  
Anders' eyes were filled with compassion. The pirate in front of him wouldn't listen. At the mentioning of killing the tranquil Isabela's pupils dilated a little bit, and she threw a look at Aisha whose arm she was still holding.  
"No," the pirate said, "I will never kill her. And she cannot remain this way. Any price is worth it. Let's do it."  
Anders sighed heavily.  
"As long as you realise that you will not be paying this price. She is.”  
Isabela looked unsure for a moment but then she nodded, determined once more. He continued.   
“Tranquils also go to the Fade when they dream, but they are invisible to spirits and demons. If Justice knows what to look for he can force her out, touch her mind. Make her Fade-self and body-self connected once more. But we need for Aisha to sleep. I've made a simple sleeping potion that will put her to sleep so that we can proceed."  
"What will happen when Justice has done the actual reversal?" Hawke said, "is there any risk that she could become an abomination?"  
"Justice is not going to possess her! So no, probably not. But I cannot be sure what will actually happen afterwards, and most likely she is going to be more vulnerable to possession and also very emotional."  
Isabela nodded.  
"Aisha," Anders said as he reached inside his robe to procure the potion, "drink this."  
The girl looked at her, her eyes still void of emotion. Her unseeing eyes caused Isabela to shiver, the pirate longed for her friend to be normal again.  
The girl took the bottle and drank the contents without even asking what it was for. Tranquils weren't stupid, or had a deathwish; the girl just knew that Isabela wouldn't let anything happen to her. It wasn't an emotional type of trust, the girl just knew it as a fact.  
Isabela caught her as the strong herbs rose to her head and caused her to fall asleep.  
"You can put her in my room.. I guess," Hawke said but sounded slightly unsure. The woman was still not sure if the whole reversal was a good thing and she really didn't want a fight to happen in her bedroom. But she also saw how tenderly Isabela carried the tranquil.  
Isabela held Aisha as the party slowly walked to Hawke's bedroom. The young Rivaini looked peaceful in her sleep, her eyelashes so dark against her cheeks, and Isabela almost felt bad that she was going to force all the horrors of living on the girl once more. The pirate thought back to another time, a time when Aisha had still been Aisha…  
Isabela put her friend on the bed and moved a few strands of black hair from the tranquil's face, hoping that none of her companions would notice the sudden display of tenderness. She turned around and nodded at Anders.  
"Let's do it."  
Anders nodded and went to sit next to Aisha, motioning for Isabela and the rest to stay back.  
"This might take a while. Just be patient," Anders said and then his eyes flashed blue for a moment.  
Meaningless words escaped from his lips, and wisps of blue light dashed around him and Aisha. Isabela has to stop herself from clutching a hand to her chest, not wanting to display any more vulnerability. Her heart was beating so fast, that the pirate worried that Hawke would hear it. Merrill, bless her heart, touched the pirate's arm lightly as if wanting to provide comfort. Merrill always knew.  
They stood still, watching Anders work for what felt like forever. Isabela’s patience started dwindling as Anders was simply sitting still. Whatever it was that he was doing, it was hidden from Isabela, Hawke and Merrill.  
"Maker!" Anders pulled back suddenly and his eyes turned back to their usual colour, "no, oh, no!" He screamed while tears poured out of his eyes. Isabela and Hawke stared at him, neither sure what was happening or what they should do. But then a sudden scream made them noticed that Anders had only been distracting them.  
Aisha was sitting up, her face flushed and her mouth opened.  
"Aisha!" Isabela yelled and ran to the girl's side.  
Aisha turned towards her, her brown eyes no longer cold. Instead they were burning and hurting.  
The pirate had to duck as the girl started screaming again and lashed out with her arms and legs, twistingand turning on the bed.


End file.
